How to Wrap Gifts: The Craft & Psychology of Gift Wrapping

Whenever the time comes around for someone’s birthday, wedding, or another type of celebration, maybe even an important holiday, the first thing that pops into everyone’s mind is what they can buy their loved ones as presents.

Sure, the most significant part of gift-giving is finding something the recipient will love—a crafty project, a good bite to eat, an excellent album to dance to, etc. We could go on and on with gift ideas, but the final choice always comes down to the recipient and what they like.

That said, after you find the perfect gift, the time comes to think about what you could do to wrap it. Should you take it to a professional and have the gift wrapped for you? Do you have the time for that, and are you willing to spend the extra few bucks to have someone do that for you? If the answer to any of these questions is no, you’ll probably need to wrap the gift yourself.

This is where many people start to panic, but we’re here to tell you there’s no need for something like that. We’ve been helping people prepare gifts for various moments and celebrations—if there’s one thing we know how to do, it’s to prepare a great gift! That’s exactly what we’ll teach you through today’s guide.

We’ll go over some of the best gift-wrapping techniques and tell you more about what you can use to wrap the gift, what you can use as fancy and stylish toppers, and how to choose the color palette depending on the person and occasion.

It’ll surely not be easy to remember everything and get everything right from the get-go, but all the information will come in handy and allow you to be prepared for gift wrapping anytime.

If you want to learn more on this topic, let’s get right into the guide!

How to Wrap Gifts: Step-by-Step Guide

In today’s day and age, it’s easy to find inspiration and guidelines to do almost anything. When it comes to gift wrapping, a quick Google search will give you so many ideas to reference that it will almost be too challenging to choose which one you want to go with.

That said, our experience in gift-giving and wrapping has taught us that there are three easy techniques that any beginner can master in only a few tries. The first is wrapping a box, the second is making a gift bag, and the third is wrapping your present as a piece of candy.

Sounds interesting, right? You can try out any of these techniques on your gift, but the one you choose will ultimately come down to your skills and the actual shape of the present. If the present is in a box, it will be easiest to use the box-wrapping technique. The candy technique is best used for gifts that don’t have a set shape—maybe something made out of fabric. The bag technique is excellent for all kinds of gifts, especially smaller ones you want to conceal fully without making them look too small.

With that being said, let’s get right into the gift-wrapping process and see how you would best prepare your gift before giving it to the intended recipient.

Wrapping a Gift in a Box

To wrap a gift in a box is easy and involves only a few simple steps. While some gifts come in boxes from the get-go—jewelry, watches, chocolates, etc.—some you can place into a box after purchasing.

There are a ton of great gift boxes that don’t require any wrapping at all, but you can also go for a simple cardboard box you’ll wrap to add a personalized touch. If that’s what you decide to do, here’s what you need:

The first thing to do is gather all the tools you need. That would involve the cardboard box that fits your gift, wrapping paper, a topper, something to glue the paper, and a pair of scissors. We recommend using either a glue gun or a silicone gun for easy gluing. However, you can also go with regular tape; just be mindful that it might not look that good or last that long.
The second step is to prepare the gift box. Put the gift in it, ensure it fits well, close it, and maybe even tape it shut if needed. Add some tissue paper if you plan on putting something fragile in the box. That will help you keep the gift from breaking. After you fit the gift in the box, move on to the next step.
Now, lay the wrapping paper or whatever you plan on using as a wrapper on a flat surface. Roll out enough material so you can comfortably fit the box on it. Measure enough material to cover the entire box from all sides, and even consider leaving out some extra material just in case. Now, it’s time to start cutting and joining everything together.
Glue the box in place and start putting the materials up the sides. Cut when you ensure you have enough material to cover the sides. Glue the material in place if needed, but you can also leave it as is. As you fold the material over the gift, ensure you have enough to cover the entire box. Where you need to overlap the material, make flaps with 45-degree angles so the wrapping looks more professionally done. Close all ends and tuck in the extra paper with flaps.
When you get to the final side of the box, ensure you cut all excess wrapping paper so that the gift looks well done. Glue everything in place and turn the box around to ensure you haven’t missed anything. After covering all sides of the box with tape or glue, you can move on to a more fun part—adding the toppers!
Depending on your preference and the event for which you prepare the gift, you can decide what you want to put on top of the gift. It could be a small toy if the gift is meant for a baby or a young child. It could be ribbons or flowers for youngsters, birthday celebrations, weddings, etc. For holidays, you can go with holiday-inspired toppers like cinnamon sticks, tree branches, pine cones, etc. We recommend using a silicone gun to stick the topper in place, as regular glue will probably not hold the elements together for long.
At this point, you’re all ready with the actual gift. The only thing remaining is deciding whether you want to put a card with your name on the gift so that the recipient will know who it’s from. A holiday card is recommended only for holiday gifts, while a name card is excellent for weddings, birthdays, and similar occasions. Don’t forget to take the price tags off the gift!
And voila—you’re all done! If your gift doesn’t look professionally done and only has a few straight or neat edges—don’t worry. We’ve found that people love to see others put in the work. It’s not about how the wrapping looks as much as it’s about the effort put into it. So, we don’t doubt that the person receiving the gift will love it and appreciate you for the effort you put into it!

Wrapping a Gift in a Bag

For those who don’t want to wrap gifts in boxes, there’s another technique you can try out. We love making homemade bags for smaller gifts, as we find they look incredibly professional, elegant, and well done, even with people who try making them for the first time. This process involves a few simple steps that we’ll cover below, so ensure you read everything carefully!

First things first—gather the things you need. The supplies will be the same as in the previous wrapping technique: tape, glue, scissors, the gift, wrapping material, a sewing kit, some toppers, etc. We recommend fabric instead of wrapping paper for this technique, as it’s much easier to sew. However, you can adjust the technique depending on your preferred wrapping material.
Decide what you’ll use for storage for your gift—will it be in a box of some kind, in bubble wrapping, or just in some tissue paper? At this point, you’ll have to prepare the gift to help you decide how much material you need for the wrapping.
Next, lay out the material on a flat surface. Place the gift on it and measure the amount of material needed. Leave at least a few inches on the sides. Leave more on the top, as we recommend making the bag look a bit bigger. You’ll cut a large rectangular piece that can easily fit the gift in the middle, then fold it in half to see how the bag will look.
As soon as you have the big piece of material, you can decide what you want to do with the edges. If you use paper, you can go with a glue gun and glue the folded material. If you’re going with fabric, a safer choice would be a silicone gun or even sewing the material in place. If you know how to sew, it would be best to sew the sides of the material together and make a pocket-like opening. You can also go over the ends of the material and make nice edges so that the bag looks more professionally done.
After you sew or glue the material, place the gift into the pocket-like opening. At the top of the bag, you can wrap some ribbon or even some hemp strings, depending on your preference. You should get a fabric gift bag closed shut with a string. Alternatively, you can use some toppers, a name card, gift tags, or any other ornament you like. That would be the finishing touch and your personal touch for the gift.

Wrapping a Gift as Candy

From what we explained above, you can guess that a certain amount of patience and effort goes into these techniques. Precise measuring is always needed; you have to think twice before cutting and be careful when gluing and sewing. It all points toward this being a process that can be a bit draining.

But what happens if you just bought some last-minute gifts and need to wrap them quickly? Can you do something to make the gift look nice but still be done in a few minutes? The answer is a resounding YES! The candy wrapping technique is the best thing for such situations, and here’s what it entails:

The first thing you need is your gift, some wrapping paper or material, a piece of ribbon you would use to close the material, some glue, and a pair of scissors. This method can be used on all kinds of gifts, from large water bottles to small and fragile figurines. Next, you’ll see why!
Put the wrapping paper or material on a flat surface and place the gift on top. Measure the gift and ensure you have enough material to cover it all. You’ll need extra material on the sides for the twisting technique, while you’ll need to cut accurately at the center of the gift.
At the center, start folding the material to cover the gift as a whole. As you get to the last side, glue the material so it doesn’t move around or cause your gift to slip accidentally. You’ll be twisting your gift in the next step, so proper placement and a secure position are necessary.
After gluing at the center of the gift, grab the extra long material you left on the side and twist it around. The gift wrapping should start to look like the wrapping on those classic pieces of candy. But since you’ll have a lot of material, you’ll need to use some wire ribbon or other type of string to secure the material in place. Repeat the same process on both sides of the gift.
In the end, you can add extra toppers, but if you ask us, the extra material and ribbon should do their thing. You can trim the edges of the material and ribbon to ensure nothing sticks out in the wrong way. After that, add a simple name tag or a message for the gift recipient, and you’ll be good to go!

Wrapping the Perfect Gift: Alternatives to Wrapping Paper

We know that wrapping paper is the first thing many think about when wondering how to wrap gifts. We’ll grant you this—there are so many wrapping paper options that you would never get tired of buying more and more and seeing how it would look on your presents.

However, sometimes, old-fashioned wrapping paper can be challenging to work with and a bit out of style, especially for people who want to be more eco-friendly.

This is why we decided to include extra information on wrapping paper alternatives you should consider when preparing your gifts. As you may have noticed in the guides above, you can use materials, boxes, and other things to create a neat present. But let’s go into the topic in more detail and explore some other great options:

Wrapping Paper Roll

Classic wrapping paper is one of the most affordable and easily accessible materials for gift wrapping. You can go with colored paper, craft paper, or decorative paper—there are many colors and patterns to explore.

Some come with holiday-inspired prints, while others have dolls and cars on them, making them perfect for children. As you can see, you’ll have no shortage of options to consider.

Other Types of Paper

Regular wrapping paper is no longer in style as much as it used to be, so people have started using various other options. A great option would be using some sheet music to wrap your gift. It will surely be a fun way to make the gift look unique.

You can also use the pages of an old or damaged book you have lying around or even some old newspaper—it’ll surely look so nice with some hemp strings, dried flowers, or dried fruits. Trust us—this is a fool-proof combo for gifts nowadays, and we’ve found people love it!

Gift Box

There are a ton of ready-made boxes you can buy and simply fit the gift inside. You would need to select a good side box, decide on the color, think about a patterned cover for the top, and some tissue paper for the inside. If you want a simple color and no print, consider adding a ribbon on the outside of the box to make it look more elegant.

Vintage Maps

Vintage maps are so in right now that they have started being used for wrapping gifts. This is undoubtedly a great idea, especially when preparing a gift for someone interested in traveling and exploring. You can add toppers inspired by trips and exploration, maybe a compass or a small bottle with a message inside. It will make your gift look so unique that the recipient will surely love it!

Jars

Who says you can’t use a regular jar to pack a gift? You would use it when you take some of your homemade jam to your aunt, but you can also use it for other gifts.

We’ve seen so many great ideas where people put messages on small pieces of paper inside the jar, even adding some small ornaments, gifts, candy, flowers, and whatnot. Jars are in right now, so consider using one if your gift fits inside.

Clay Pots

If you have a present that can fit inside a clay pot, we would recommend using the pot as a gift wrapper. You can add the present inside or make it stick out at the top while decorating the pot to make it look fun and unique.

Unless varnished with special colors, you should be able to draw on the clay pot and paint over it with watercolors. It will be a second gift for the recipient, and they’ll love your work of art!

Baskets

Baskets are another great option for gift wrapping since they come in all shapes and sizes. Nowadays, there are so many talented people who can make special baskets to fit your gift and make it look unique. Even better, there are many online classes you can take to learn the basket weaving technique.

Think about it—you can use anything from grass to thread, vines, straws, pine, fur, and so much more to make a unique gift basket. Then, you can fill in the extra space with leaves, tissue paper, cotton, or even some extra gifts to make it all come together. What a cool idea, right?

Gift Wrapping Toppers: Top Ideas

In addition to the different packaging and wrapping options, we would also like to mention some of the best gift-wrapping toppers you can explore. There’s no way you can go wrong when it comes to toppers. We’ve seen people use almost everything and make it look great, as there are no guidelines on what you can or can’t use on a gift.

However, here are some of the top options we would recommend to people still looking for the topper that could get their gift to the next level:

Ribbon

A simple ribbon in a vibrant color is a great way to make a gift box look more elegant and sophisticated. There are ribbons in all colors and lengths, so you should have no problem finding one that will fit your gift well.

Flowers

If you’re not going to take a separate bouquet with your gift, consider adding flowers on top of it. It doesn’t have to be anything over the top: it could be some dried or perforated flowers you glue to the wrapping paper to make it look more stylish. Flower toppers are usually best when paired with a simple white, black, or brown paper.

Crafts

If you’re good with your hands, why not try to make some origami flowers that you add to your gift? Depending on the gift recipient’s likes, you can find easy tutorials to make origami of their favorite animals, flowers, toys, etc.

The options are endless, but these toppers usually require more work. However, it will all be worth it when you see the smiles on the faces of the recipients!

Natural Toppers

One of the most widely used toppers nowadays is natural toppers. You can explore many options, from tree branches to leaves, pine cones, small cotton flowers, dried fruit, and whatnot. Cinnamon sticks are perfect for Christmas gifts, while dried lemon or orange slices look amazing on summer gifts!

Candy

If you’re planning a gift for a foodie, a great option is to use candy or chocolates as toppers. We have seen many concepts where people use an open box and fill it with various chocolates to make the person a little snack bar in addition to the actual gift.

If they’re into liquor and of legal drinking age, consider pairing the chocolates with small bottles of brandy, whiskey, or their favorite liquor.

Toys

Finally, gifts prepared for kids always pair well with toys. On top of the gift or in combination, you can add a small stuffed toy, a car toy, a doll, or anything else you think the child will like. The options are endless, but ensure you find something that fits the size and color scheme of the actual gift and gift wrapping.

The Psychology Behind Gift Wrap Colors

One of the questions we often get asked is how we choose the color for the gift wrapping paper, toppers, and everything else that goes into the wrapping process. Choosing the right colors doesn’t come naturally to many people, not because they don’t have good taste but because they don’t understand the psychology behind the colors.

We want to elaborate on this as we believe it will be crucial to people. Let’s get right into the nitty-gritty!

Complementary vs. Analogous Color Scheme

You see, there is a certain thought process that goes into wrapping a gift. We think of it as a design process: as a designer who needs to make packaging, you think about the color scheme first. The same should be with the package wrapping process—you need to envision what you want the gift to look like.

You should decide whether to go with complementary or analogous colors. The former means that you’ll be using colors that are quite the opposite of one another—green and magenta, blue and yellow, orange and turquoise, etc. These color combinations are better for more positive events like birthdays or similar celebrations, while they’re also an excellent choice for small children.

As for monochromatic or analogous colors, they’re colors that are similar to one another, even like more shades of the same color. This color scheme gives a more sophisticated, elegant look, which is why we recommend it for events such as weddings, gallery openings, etc. An example of a monochromatic color scheme would be light green, olive green, deep forest green, and similar shades of the same color.

But wait—there’s something that’s even more important than the color scheme. Keep reading to find out what it is!

Colors & Emotions

Have you ever considered how you’d decide what color to use when wrapping a gift? Is it best to go with blue, or are shades of red a better option? You might not know this, but there’s a physiology behind color picking that talks about the types of feeling a color can evoke.

A quick Google search could tell you more about the feeling usually connected to color, but here’s a quick rundown of the colors you should consider and the feelings or events they’re connected to:

White: White is usually connected to weddings and funerals. It gives out a feeling of purity but also of mourning, hence the events mentioned before. However, it can also make people think of something clean, something neutral. If used for events such as birthdays, it could be paired with a ribbon of a more vibrant color—red, purple, green, etc.
Black: Black is more often than not used for funerals, although it doesn’t have to be connected to the feeling of mourning. If you want to wrap your gift in black, you should consider whether it evokes the following feelings in you—power, strength, and elegance. These feelings are often connected to this color, so wrapping a gift for someone you consider physically or mentally strong could easily help you choose black.
Yellow: Yellow is usually connected to optimism, happiness, and cheeriness. You would usually use this color when wrapping a gift for a birthday or similar celebration, usually for children but also for people who are all about vibrance and radiate positivity. However, this color is also connected to the feeling of hunger, so if you plan on gifting food or snacks, you can always go with a yellow box or wrapping material.
Orange: Orange is quite similar to yellow in the feelings it evokes, but it also makes a great color combo with it. You would use this color on gifts for enthusiastic, happy, and always cheerful people. Similarly, orange also evokes the feeling of energy, so you can use it to wrap gifts for someone energetic, always on the move, always working out, etc.
Pink: Pink is a color usually connected to femininity, but that doesn’t always have to be the case. While it looks great on gifts for young girls or people who are more sensitive and gentle, it can also signify a feeling of love and calmness, so it’s a great choice for gifts for partners or loved ones.
Red: Red screams elegance, love, and romance but is also connected to energy, warmth, and wealth. If you decide to use it for gift wrapping, our recommendation is to go with a ribbon that’s in a slightly darker red shade. Red is best paired with red to give out that extra feeling of love and romance. You can never go wrong with it when preparing a gift for a partner.
Green: Green is something that makes you think of nature, so it might be an excellent choice for those who are outdoor enthusiasts. A green gift wrapping will immediately draw these people in, giving them a sense of tranquility. However, this color is also often connected to growth and health, so you should consider using it for gifts for someone’s recovery, someone’s new job, promotion, etc.
Blue: Although it often reminds people of coldness and distance, blue can also give a feeling of calmness, loyalty, wisdom, etc. You can pair it with white accents or use a blue ribbon on a white-wrapped gift. You would often find it on winter-inspired wrapping paper, usually paired with snowflakes, which looks so cool and is the perfect option when wrapping Christmas gifts!

Wrapping It Up: Become Everyone’s Favorite Gift Giver

Thank you for reading this detailed guide on how to wrap gifts and make them look professionally done. We hope that by going through everything, you found at least a few options to try. We recommend getting to it as soon as possible, as the extra practice will only make you better when the time comes around for the actual gift wrapping.

That said, don’t be discouraged if everything doesn’t look professionally done on the first few tries. Everything takes practice, and this is the case with everyone. Even our team of professional gift wrappers spent hours upon hours testing different wrapping techniques and materials before deciding on the recommendations we wanted to include in this guide.

Some of the techniques we included are more advanced than others, but there’s nothing you can’t master with a little effort!

That said, we would love nothing more than to learn your favorite recommendation from this guide and what you would consider using the next time you need to wrap a gift.

If you know of other fun materials and wrapping techniques you would like to share with us and other readers, please do so in the comments below. We always appreciate your input on any topic and can’t wait to read about your creative wrapping techniques and the materials you love using!